Turkey!

Ah, the joys of a few days off of work. Heading home to have a meal, see family, and do all that fun stuff. Yes, it's Thanksgiving. Sue and I are going to my mom's for dinner tomorrow. It'll just be the three of us, a nice small meal. I like holidays, but I also like not making a *huge* deal of them. It's a good time to reconnect with family and friends, which is a good life affirming process.

Reflective? Perhaps. I like the small gatherings better than larger ones, although I guess everything has its time and place. I don't dislike large groups, it's just that I have to be in the mood for it. But even then, I generally prefer to hang out with no more than 5-6 people at once, it gives everyone a chance to contribute something.

Both Sue and I got off of work early today. I'm on call for work, so we really couldn't go out and do stuff, but we did order Chinese for dinner, which is always tasty. I went with the Sesame Chicken, and Sue did spicy szchewan (gross misspelling, right!) tofu. And, there's plenty for leftovers...

I'm thinking the drive down to Asbury Park for dinner shouldn't be too bad tomorrow. And if the Turnpike/Parkway are crowded, we can always hop off of there and go on the "back" roads. We'll probably pop into my Dad's after eating at my mom's, to see people over there also. It'll be a fun day.

On Saturday, Sue and I are going to a wedding in NYC for one of her friends from High School. That's a big event that I can usually get into. I've never been to a wedding in NYC, so this will be a good time. The place is up around 61st Street, I believe, and it starts late (7pm or so) on Saturday.

That's about it for now, nothing too deep tonight...

NP: King Crimson - The Letters (16 October 1971)

Hose!

I brought my car to AAMCO this morning, and they fixed it right up for me. There was some sort of hose that was loose, and some transmission fluid had leaked out. They waved the magic car fixing wand over my auto, and all is now well. It's actually driving better than it was on Saturday, I believe. I'll have to bring it back late next week for a quick check, to make sure all is well, but I'm fairly confident it'll be fine. No charge for this morning's work either, since it was their issue with whatever hose had to be replaced that caused it.

In other news, those of you who know me know of my musical tastes, and recent news has been made public that one of my favorite bands, Genesis, will be touring next year. I know Genesis gets kind of a bad rap, being not very fashionable, due mainly to the presence of Phil Collins, but that's okay. Genesis has always been a band that's more than their radio hits, and I'm looking forward to seeing them next year when they tour in the US. I just hope it doesn't conflict with any work committments, but I'm sure the odds of that are small.

The tour initially was supposed to be a "Lamb Lies Down on Broadway" show, with Peter Gabriel and Steve Hackett rejoining the band, but Gabriel is still a bit hesitant to commit to such a venture. Give it another year or two, and I think it'll go forward. Genesis, back in the day, was a very "arty" band, and even their more modern albums (released 12 years ago!) weren't just three minute singles. And, you look at the older albums, and there are three minute songs on there also. From their first album of worth, "Trespass," from 1970, to "We Can't Dance" from 1992, there are songs of value on each album. Yeah, "Invisible Touch" was a bit over overkill, but that album was almost an accident of the 1980's. A conjunction of decent songs, with Collins's popularity just propelled the band to another level. There are songs I love on each Genesis album, and there are songs I can live without. Hopefully this upcoming tour (in late summer 2007 in the US) will give me more of the ones I enjoy. All signs are looking good, for now...

NP: George Gershwin - An American In Paris

Comedy!

Something very funny happened today. Sue and I were driving to the supermarket in my car (yes, it's back, more on that later), and on the back of a car in front of us, there was a deer that someone had obviously hunted and killed, strapped on the trunk hood.

Sue doesn't like looking at those types of things (dead animals, etc), so looked away. Unfortunately, the car was in front of us for a few minutes, so it was hard to avoid the gaze of the deceased deer. What made me laugh so much was Sue's line: "Well, she looks like she's just resting on the back of the car, so that's okay."

Of course, I had to point out that few deers would rest on the back of a car in the first place, let alone tied up with their head hanging down the side of the car, but what do I know about wildlife?

But in other non-dead-animal related news, I do have my car back, after it being at AAMCO for a bit of time. It's driving well, the brakes are good, and I'm getting used to the new transmission. However, on the way back from the supermarket this afternoon, the yellow check engine light went on. Yellow is not too bad, if it was red, I'd be really worried. But, I'll have to bring the car back to the mechanic on Monday, to have them check out what's up. It's probably just a loose something or other, but I still want it checked out.

This light has only gone on once before, when I first moved to Vermont back in 1998. At that point, there was an issue with the air filter in the car, so it was replaced very quickly. I think this will be something as minor, but it's still a pain to have to have it taken care of, when I just got the car back.

In other news, what have I been reading recently? I finished, about a week ago, Joseph Ellis's book on Thomas Jefferson, "American Sphinx." It was a good read, but fairly light, compared to other books that I've read on Jefferson. He also skipped over some of the more touchy subjects of Jefferson's life, such as his response to the Aaron Burr affair, and the slavery issue. Ellis did do well with Jefferson's ability to basically say one thing, and believe another. Self deception and Jefferson go hand in hand, and Ellis, perhaps wisely, stayed away from conjecture about Jefferson's interior world. But, that is what makes Jefferson so fascinating. It certainly wasn't a bad read, but I was hoping for a bit better.

Then, I read "Star Wars on Trial," edited by David Brin and some other guy. Brin is one of my favorite SF authors, and he does have a bee in his bonnet about the Star Wars movies. Generally, he feels that public perception of Star Wars=The Entirety of Good Science Fiction is a bit off the mark. I don't necessarily disagree with him about it, but sometimes I felt that the "Prosecution" essays in the book were taking it all a bit too seriously. The "Defense" essays weren't that much better, although all were generally entertaining. I don't know what I was hoping for from this book, but I don't really feel that I got it.

Now, I'm reading Richard Dawkins's "The God Delusion." More reports on that one as I get into it, I'm only about 5 pages in right now.

NP: Phil Collins - I've Forgotten Everything

Car!

Ah, it finally happened. I have had to put a rather large amount of money into my car.

Recently, when stopped at a traffic light or stop sign, I've noticed that when I go to accelerate, sometimes the car would not immediately go after pressing the gas. It'd rev' a bit, and then go, like the gear wasn't catching right away. I've never driven a stick shift, but I imagine it's like when a gear would slip or something like that.

So, I brought it to a national chain repair place, (Beep-Beep), and they diagnosed the trouble as the transmission, which is what I expected. And as you may or may not know, transmissions are fairly expensive to fix.

Now, the car I have is 9 years old, and in those years, I've probably only put about $1200 into it, outside of oil changes and other minor maintenance. So, spending the bucks that we're spending now, over the life of the car, doesn't hurt too much. But, this is the last major money I'm putting into the car. If this can help it last for 2-3 more years, then it'll be worth it.

The car should be ready tomorrow. I'll either pick it up during or after work.

Some people get very emotional about their cars. I'm not one of them. I tried to name the car when I first got it (G'Kar, pretty clever for you B5 nerds out there), but it just felt kinda stupid naming it. So, it's just my car. 97 Chevy Cavalier, I got it while in grad school, and it has served me well.

Yesterday, I took Sue's car down home to see my stepsister's new baby. It was good to see the little guy, and it's fun to be able to make casual visits home, without it being a major production. Both the drive down and the drive back took a little over an hour. Both mother and baby are doing well, although mom is tired from baby, which is to be expected...

NP: Pink Floyd - One Slip (9 Sept 1987)

Cups!

Sue and I went to the movies today, saw "Stranger Than Fiction." Quite good, and more on that later.

While waiting for the movie to start, and drinking my large Cherry-Coke, I was reminded of an idea that Brian had awhile back. It's a brilliant one, and it came to my mind today while reading the vapid, banal blatherings up on the screen from half unknown celebrites in the "E!" series of quotes. Something from Carmen Electra along the lines of "Life's not worth living if there's not a camera around," or some such thing.

Brian's idea was to have McDonalds and other fast food places, instead of just having "YAY MCDONALDS" or whatever they put on their cups or other packaging, have historical facts, interesting educational stuff on their materials. It would be good PR for the companies, and good for the populace who might actually learn something, instead of either being unengaged with the items in their hands, or looking at the latest M logo on the cups. When the companies would do their promotions, sure, they could still make Darth Vader cups, or whatever they wanted, but at other times, they'd be educating the public. It would be cheap, and fun! They're already paying someone to design the logos on their packages, just have a historian or someone on staff also, to bring up interesting facts from the past.

I thought today that another interesting place to do this, with a captive audience, was in movie theaters. I don't truly care what Carmen Electra, Matt Damon, or others have to say about their fleeting fame, why not put some quotes from Jefferson, Washington, Martin Luther King, and others up there? Or, do "History of the Movies," with Charlie Chaplin, or even go back further, get quotes from Edwin Booth up there... Granted, no films were made in the 1800's, but he *was* an actor.

Rant mode off now...

But, one other quick thing. One of the ads before the movie was for a car repair place in Jersey City, and their tag line was "We take the Dents out of Accidents." Clever, and it got me thinking if "dents" is actually derived from "accidents." I'll have to look that up. An answer to this in a future blog.

As for the movie itself, I really enjoyed it. Will Ferrell was understated, which is when I think he's actually at his most funny. The story was fun, although parts did feel a bit underdeveloped, such as Ferrell's relationship with the female lead (Maggie Glynnenhall, or however it's spelled). It would have been nice to see Buster Bluth (Tony Hale) get more screen time too, but I was just happy to see him with two hands. Overall, a good solid recommendation from Sue and myself for the movie.

The idea of a fictional character realizing they're in a fiction isn't original to this movie. I think I first ran across it in novels by Robert Heinlein, specifically in "The Number of the Beast" and "The Cat Who Walks Through Walls." Any other examples out there that you, gentle readers, can think of?

On Friday night, I watched the new Battlestar Galactica. I enjoyed the episode, but thought that the resolution was a bit anti-climatic. However, in the big picture, I am wondering the following about the show:

• It seems like the Galactica, along with the Cylons, are really on the trail of Earth. I think at some point, they will find the lost 13th colony, but when in the show will it happen? Not this season, I predict. Probably not even in the 4th season, should one happen. Also, what era will they find Earth? There's no guarantee that they'll find it during our "present" history. It'd be fun if they stumble upon Earth, and we're still in medieval times, or something like that.
• Will the Cylons kill Baltar? So far, the show hasn't killed off any major characters (Billy doesn't count), so may the B-man be the first to go? I personally don't think so, he's too fun to be around...
• Will Sharon/Athena and Hilo conceive again? I don't see why not. Sooner or later, she'll have to find out that her baby is alive. What are the Cylons doing with the baby anyway?

I think that's all for now... Coming up soon, what is Mike reading?

NP: Genesis - Back In N.Y.C. (15 Apr 1975)

Election!

Ah, politics. It's so nice when things change, and we see the voice of the voters expressed so clearly.

I do have to say that, like many, I thought that the House would go Democrat this election. I thought there was a strong chance of the Senate going Democrat also, but was less willing to put myself out there with that possibility. Turns out I was right.

And, the country got a boost when Rumsfeld was resigned the day after the election. Now, what do you all think out there? Do you think that if Rumsfeld had left, lets say, a week before the election, it would have helped the Republicans at all? Personally, I think it would have, although there would have been talk of it being a political move. Which, of course, it would be.

I must imagine that there are some Republicans out there who are annoyed at the timing of the Rumsfeld decision, thinking that, like I say above, Rumsfeld departure could have been better timed for their electoral benefit.

Now, if the Republicans had held onto both houses of Congress, would Rumsfeld have been kept on?

While I'm happy that the Democrats now have Congress, I'm not expecting us to be out of Iraq tomorrow. What I do expect is that perhaps a bright light can be turned on the events of the past 4-6 years, so that we can begin to learn the truth about the Iraq debacle, and other various and sundry issues. I think we're in for some interesting times.

NP: Jon Anderson - Cafe

Beta!

A quick note to say that I've switched over to Blogger Beta. Don't know if it makes any real difference, but figured I'd say something about it.

That's why I didn't write last night, this was taking all evening to update to Beta. I will write more political stuff tonight...

Cheers!

Mike

Election!

I'd love to hear Anderson Cooper on CNN ask Bill Bennett, "So, if you were a betting man, where would you place the final results tonight?"

It may be in poor taste, but I'd laugh.

I voted early today, with some of the new electronic machines here in NJ. I've never been disenfranchised so efficiently!

Actually, I thought the machine seemed pretty efficient. We still need some sort of paper receipt, which I always thought the old machines should have given also.

Looking pretty good for Democrats now. Lets hope the night continues in this way.

NP: CNN Election coverage

Belt!

I managed one more belt hole in my belt this morning, going the thinner way. So, I guess that's good. There's less of me to go around now.

I need to take more photos to put up on here. I've been a little remiss in doing that recently.

NP: Steve Hackett - Little Cloud (26 Jan 2002)

Sweat!

Just got done exercising a few minutes ago. I've been holding steady at doing about 20 minutes on the elliptical machine each night. Sooner or later, I'll up it to half an hour, and that will be as high as it goes. I've mentioned on here before, I'm not really willing to give up more of my life than that to exercise. 30 minutes is enough to keep me active, get the heart rate up a bit, and sweat off a bit of the poundage.

Although, I have to say, just cutting down on the food intake, I've already lost at least 10 pounds. At Dartmouth, it was very easy to get some ice cream at lunch, and eat other extra stuff. I'm finding here at Saint Peter's, even though the cafeteria is all you can eat, that I'm eating less in general. If that can continue, then maybe I'll even drop into the 175 lbs. area I've been out of since about 1996. I don't think I'll ever get down to my high school weight of 140-145, but I have no real urge to get that light again.

I suppose it's time to start thinking about Christmas, people will start asking what I want. Honestly, there's not a lot of "stuff" out there that I'm looking to get. I enjoy books, music, and getting some DVD's, but I'm trying to cut down on all three, especially the DVD's.

Maybe a donation in my name to the Human Fund is in order...

Of course, I do have to also start thinking about what to get others in my life. It is fun to get people stuff, but it's hard, especially when you don't know what they're looking for, or what they have.

I actually have an idea for a friend's birthday, which I have to order soon... Ack, but I need that friend's new address! Maybe he'll get the hint by reading this blog, and send me his address.

Eh, probably not, I better e-mail him.

Don't forget to vote on Tuesday. Vote early, vote often!

NP: ProjeKct Two - Live Groove (1 June 1998)

Vote!

Ah, November 1st, and thoughts turn to election day this coming November 7th (right?), and our upcoming mid-term elections. I encourage everyone out there to vote, no matter what your political persuasion...

Okay, I'd much prefer if all Republicans stayed home this coming Tuesday, but hey, I have to be equitable, right?

Well, it is my blog, so screw it...

Personally, I think it's important to vote in every election. I remember, in the November 1984 election, my grandfather was in the hospital, and wasn't able to vote. On the way to the hospital, the Saturday following the election, I recall my dad saying that Pop actually had some connections, and found out afterwards they could have got him an absentee ballot, so he wouldn't have missed out voting.

When we were in the hospital room, I mentioned this to Pop, and said something along the lines of, "Well, Reagan won, so missing your vote didn't really change the outcome, he didn't need your vote to win." Pop then looked at me, and said, "You always vote, no matter if you're sure your candidate will win. " I didn't argue with my Pop, so I have always thought that no matter what, you vote.

That was also the last time I saw him alive, as he died, surprisingly, that night in the hospital. He was 68 years old. His health was failing, so if he didn't pass away then, with hindsight, I don't know how much longer he would have lived, but I think that also makes it important for me to vote whenever I can.

Granted, I don't know if Pop would be happy with me voting Democrat most of the time, but you can't win them all. At least I'm voting!

My polling place here in Jersey City is within walking distance, so I'll probably go during lunch on Tuesday. It'll be fun, although there are less local races going on than I thought. It's really only the Senate and House race happening. No state or local candidates on the sample ballot I got. So, it should be pretty quick to get in and out and rock the vote...

In other news, I was glad to see my old friend Geoff make a comment here on the blog... I look forward to more comments!

NP: Queen - Keep Yourself Alive

Halloween!

Yes, it is, of course, Halloween. No dressing up for me today, I never really think about Halloween costumes until it's too late. And usually, it's easier to just treat it like a regular day. I do think I really liked Halloween as a kid, but it was more about getting lots of candy than anything else.

I did see some kids going around, Trick-or-treating with their parents earlier today, which was fun. It really is a kid's holiday, maybe even more so than Christmas or a birthday.

I've got nothing else to really write about now... If I come up with anything else tonight, I'll log back in.

NP: Plant & Page - Nobody's Fault But Mine

Recording!

This weekend, I recorded three quick pieces on my home studio set up. I think only one of them was slightly over a minute. The other two were probably less than 45 seconds. I recorded them as musical bumpers/interludes for Pseudocertainty, recorded by Joe and myself. These bumpers will probably show up on the next episode we record, which should be in maybe 2 weeks time.

One piece is some basic percussion with some keyboards on top of them. The second was a bass piece, just messing around with some delay, and the third one was bass and guitar, very simple and straightforward... Nothing to set the world on fire, but just some good segues from one segment of the show to another.

In other news, on Saturday, I went over to the Elizabeth Public Library to check out some genealogy stuff. I got hard copies of the obituary for one of my Great-grandmothers, Apolonia Sanecki (maiden name Drozd). She died back in 1943, and I had a scan of the obit, but it's good to get the hard copy from microfilm, in case there was anything else near the obit that was relevant.

There wasn't.

But, you don't know until you check.

I also found the obit for a Frank Golda, who died in 1986. I believe, based on what I've been told from some of my Sanecki connections, that Frank was a cousin to my grandfather. I need to verify this, but if it's true, I can try to track down some living Golda's, to see if they know anything about the family.

I also started going through some of the old NJ state censuses. Unfortunately, the state censuses (every 10 years, from 1855 to 1915) are not indexed, so I have to look at each page of the census to try to find relevant people. For some places, like Harrison, NJ, it's not too bad, as the town is maybe 1/3 of an entire microfilm reel. However, Jersey City for 1885 is 5 rolls of microfilm total.

I learned this weekend that I can go through one roll of microfilm, visually scanning each page for recognizable family names, in a little over an hour. Not horrible, but not quick either. The only good thing about this is that once I find the first family connection in these reels, I should find the other Jersey City people fairly quickly, as they all lived very close to each other.

The family names I'm scanning for are Coulson, Jameson, Sutcliffe, and Ferrigan. Fortunately, not the most common of names, although there's always the danger of zoning out and missing a name as it goes by. I try to set the microfilm controls slow enough that I can read all the last names on a page, but fast enough so that I don't get bored sitting there. It's a tricky balance, but not impossible to do.

I do wish that Ancestry.com or some other website would index these State Censuses, but that's too much to ask for right now, I guess.

NP: REM - Saturn Return

Music!

This weekend, I have as my goal to write and record at least 5 short-ish (15-30 seconds) music pieces to use as bumper music for Joe and my Pseudocertainty show. I'm tired of Joe having all the music fun! Also, I think the exercise of my musical muscles will keep me interested in doing some more expansive things.

There are times when I think about recording some covers, just to be doing something with the recording equipment I have. Then, I want to do some of my own things, even if it's re-recording some songs I've already recorded. Of course, all this comes down to really wanting to generate some new material. I actually picked up the acoustic guitar for the first time in awhile tonight, just to start getting into practice playing again, should I use it at all for the recording this weekend. I'll see where the "muse" takes me. It should be fun....

I'm about 80 pages out from finishing the Alastair Reynolds book, "Century Rain," I mentioned a few blogs ago. I continue to enjoy the book, and if I don't finish it tonight, I should get it finished by this weekend.

No real plans for this weekend yet. Saturday should be rainy, so maybe we'll do indoor stuff that day.

NP: The Beatles - Ain't She Sweet

Pseudo!

Joe and I just finished recording a new episode of Pseudocertainty. It went well, and the show should be up on the website in the next few days. These are always fun to do, we work well off of each other, and when we come with material to talk about on the fly.

We really do a minimum of prep for each show, we'll read some articles, find some interesting things on line, or just have some good material to react to. As Joe said recently, we could be the "Car Talk" of aliens...

Dare to dream.

NP: Talking Heads - Heaven

Farscape!

This weekend, I finished watching the Farscape series on DVD, with the TV movie "The Peacekeeper Wars." I had seen the movie when it was originally on, back in 2005 I believe. It was definitely a satisfying conclusion to the series, but I think it did suffer from just having to resolve so much in so short a period of time.

The plot was right where it should be, but over the course of a season we would have seen so many more good character moments. It wasn't that the movie lacked good moments for the cast, but it was just too compressed. But, I still give the move a B+/A-, as it was a solid conclusion to the show. Of course, Ben Browder and Claudia Black are back working together on one of the Stargate shows. A bit of stunt casting, to be sure, but I'm glad they're working.

Just don't make me watch the show...

Tonight's my last night of duty until late in November. Without going into details, it's been a busy week. It wasn't so much the volume of things to deal with, it was that there were odd things, that were a bit off the beaten track for normal residence life stuff. But, that's why I'm paid the moderately low bucks!

I also watched the Japanese-Raymond Burr'less version of the very first Godzilla movie. It's quite good, and a much darker film than the Americanized version was. The American version focuses on the monster aspect, while there's much more of an anti-nuclear (but not anti-American) stance in the Japanese version. It's very well done for basically being a movie where the main character is a person in a dinosaur-monster outfit.

NP: Soundgarten - Spoonman

Remiss!

Of course, as Jen pointed out, I'd be remiss in not also pointing out that my stepsister Holly and her husband Dan just had their very own baby! Of course, Holly did the lion's share of the "birth" work, so really she had the baby, but we got to include the father somehow, right?

Tonight's still a duty night for me, I'll be on call to respond to any campus events until Monday morning at 9am or so. It appears that campus is pretty quiet right now, a lot of students go home for the weekend, or away with friends, so I may not get awoken in the middle of the night. Here's to hope!

I did have to run around a bit tonight, taking care of a few minor issues, so I missed portions of Battlestar Galactica. However, I did get the general idea of the episode. If you watch the show, and haven't seen this week's episode yet, you should stop reading, and come back when you've seen the show.

• It's good to see Baltar finally fall in with the Cylons on a permanent basis, in a similar way to how the original Baltar did in the first series. Not that the process was the same, but now, we'll have a better window into the Cylon world with Baltar with them.
• The image of Galactica coming through the atmosphere was great. As was Adama's final statement to his crew, before the arrival of Pegasus.
• It's sad to see Pegasus go, but I am a sucker for ramming speed. And it's good that a piece of the Pegasus took out another Base Ship...
• Adama the Hero, Tighe the Forgotten...
• I was not surprised to learn that Casey was not actually Starbuck's baby, but I did think that she was a Cylon child. So, to see that she was just another human was a good twist.
• Will Roslyn now be President for Life or something along those lines, or will there be another election?

That's all my thoughts for now. I got another Galactica disc from Netflix today, so that will probably be my viewing for tomorrow.

NP: Emerson Lake & Powell - Still, You Turn Me On... (Summer 1986)

Thursday!

Yes, I've sunk to a new low. I have no other subject for this blog, just the day...

Granted, I don't really take much time coming up with my catchy one word titles. I just go for it. That's the wildman I am on this blog.

I've been thinking about asking for a roll call in the comments here, to see how many "regular" readers I get on this. I know of a few friends/family who check in like clockwork, but I'm curious about who else is out there. But, I wonder if asking people for "attendance" is a bit too much like seeking random affirmation. Your thoughts? Feel free to write comments...

On the reading front, I just started a new science fiction book by Alastair Reynolds, called Century Rain. I have been reading less SF recently, mainly because there's more non-fiction out there that's of interest to me than fiction. However, Reynolds is a newer author who I've found, and he writes stories that aren't just space monster shoot 'em ups. I'm all for a good adventure, but less in reading and more on tv or in movies.

I've just started this book, but it seems to be a sort of murder mystery, beginning in Paris 1959, but there's a future section to it also, taking place at least a couple centuries in the future, when Earth is uninhabitable. I'm assuming the two stories are going to link up at some point, but I'm too early in the narrative to see where it's going. I've enjoyed his previous books, so I'm hoping this one will be a good read.

Other books "on deck" I have are "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins, "Star Wars on Trial," edited by David Brin and some other guy, "Abducted," by someone named Clancy, and "American Sphinx" by Joseph Ellis. Having only four books in my on deck area is rare for me, but I haven't found a good bookstore in this area yet. There's a Barnes & Nobles in Hoboken I'll have to check out, and I'm sure there's some other ones around, I just haven't made time to find them yet.

And a hearty congrats to my friend Lou and his wife Sania, they had a baby last week!

NP: Jeff Buckley - Nightmares By The Sea

Stupid!

Have you ever done something really dopey, and spent the a lot of time kicking yourself about it? I just did something like that...

Sue and I opened up new bank accounts two weekends ago, since Citizens, our old bank from NH, doesn't have any branches in this area. On the Tuesday after Columbus Day, I gave our Human Resources office my new direct deposit information for the new bank. They said that the new deposit wouldn't take effect until my November 15th paycheck, so I could expect the October 15th check to go into my old account.

Therefore, when the 15th rolled around, I initiated some bill payments, and debited them from my Citizens account. Granted, I should have checked the Citizens website, to see if my pay had credited...

You see where this is going, don't you?

So, on Monday, I check Citizens on-line, and there's still no sign of my cash. With a sinking feeling, I check my new account, and bingo, there's my money.

Eep.

I do some quick transferring of money from my old Savings into my checking account, and I end up only being overdrafted by a measly 60 cents! Today, I sent a check off to Citizens to cover that small amount. But still, it's been a pain in the butt as I've scurried around on-line, and on the phone, trying to resolve all this. I don't like being overdrawn, but I do realize I should have checked the online accounts thoroughly before initiating payment. Now, I know for the future not to do this...

In happier news, my friend Brian came down to visit this weekend. It's always too short, but when you live a few states away from each other, you take what you can get. We geeked out, talking a lot about nerdy TV stuff, watched some fun movies (Shaun of the Dead, anyone), and just hung out. It was very casual, which was good. In the future, we may do some more NYC/NJ stuff, but for this visit, relaxed was the course of the day.

I'm sure there'll be more visits in the future. Maybe I can take Brian on the cemetery tour, and show him where all my old relatives are buried. Wouldn't that be *fun?*

Wouldn't it?

NP: Frank Zappa - Dental Hygene Dilemma

Rain!

Ah, it's raining a bit now, should be kind of dreary for the next few days. Weather. What can you do?

Can I get any more inane on this thing? Weather talk. If you're really interested in the weather, go to here. Really.

I'm on the verge of finishing the present book I'm reading, "The Pirate Coast," the story of the liberation of about 300 US Navy sailors from Tripoli in the early 1800's. It's one of those events in history that people kind of know about ("...From the halls of Montezuma to the shores of Tripoli..." and all that), but that is really sketchy on the details when pressed. The book focuses on William Eaton, former American consul to Tripoli, and leader of a semi-US sponsored effort to overthrow the government of Tripoli. The book generally does a good job with the story, but the author is really in love with Eaton as a character. Not a real detraction to the book, but it's certainly not a really balanced account of the events. I am glad I read it, though. I have about 10 pages left.

That's the excitement here for now. More to come later, I'm sure...

NP: Adrian Belew - Big Blue Sun

Headstones!

Here are the two headstone photos that should have been in the blog the other day. This first one is for James and Sarah Lang. James died in 1861, and Sarah in 1884.

Below, you'll see the small headstone for John Lord, my G3-GF, who died in 1890. He was born in Ireland, and served in the Civil War for 3 years.

Exercise!

Tonight, I used our new elliptical machine for the first time for exercise (trying it out when it was first put together doesn't count). I exercised for about 14 minutes, and that was good to start. I'll try to increase by 5 minute increments over the next few days, until I'm up to 30 minutes.

That's about as much of my daily life I'm willing to give up to exercise. I have better things to do with my time that that. Like writing here. Or picking belly button lint out of the appropriate places.

Too much?

I had off from work today, while Sue had to work. We spent yesterday in Hoboken, hanging out in a park by the Hudson playing checkers, and then eating outside at a Mexican place. To prove we did all that, here's a picture of a boat on the river.

Ah, now isn't that pretty! Let me take a drink of water, and I will be right back...

Ah! H20.

Today, since Sue had to work, I did what any normal person would do on a beautiful, sunny day. I went to 3 different cemeteries!

My first stop was at Hollywood Cemetery in Union, NJ. I was looking for the plot of Thomas Lord, a cousin of my grandfather. Supposedly, according to another cousin, Thomas is buried right near his parents William and Elizabeth, but on exploring the area, I could not find a headstone for him. When I've asked before, the main office does not have a record for Thomas's burial in their cemetery. Very strange.

I then went to Fairmount Cemetery in Newark. I've been there numerous times before, but I wanted to see if I could find some headstones on Lord plots, that are there according to cemetery records, but may be overgrown. Here's an example of a cleaned up headstone, that was getting covered with grass. (NOTE: Blogger is having trouble with photos, so I will have to see if I can upload them later, perhaps tomorrow morning. The same goes for the John Lord photo mentioned below.)

Of course, for a real comparison, I should have taken a photo before I cleaned it up. Live and learn. The above photo is for the grave of James and Sarah Lang, my great-great-great-great grandparents. They lived in Harrison/East Newark in the 1860's, after having immigrated here from Ireland.

And just to round out that trip, here's a picture of John Lord's headstone, from the same plot. John is my great-great-great grandfather, also born in Ireland, and he married Jane Lang in Newark in 1851. According to the Fairmount records, Jane should have a headstone in the same plot, but it's not there. Seeing how much these were covered with grass in just about a year since my last visit, I could imagine that there are some headstones that are just buried under an inch or two of grass.

I have a 3 foot long dowel that I put a nail into one end, in order to poke around in the ground to see if I would feel the distinctive "stop" of a nail hitting stone. However, I'm not sure if the nail is long enough to reach stones that may be under more than an inch of dirt or grass. I'll have to look for a longer nail.

Or, could there be any metal detector type thing that can find cut stone under dirt? Or would all the coffins and other stuff mess that up? Side scanning sonar? Something? There's got to be money in there for something like that, to have someone invent it, if it's not real already.

Also on the genealogy front, I've dug up a possible second marriage for one of my great-great-great-great-great grandfathers, Alexander Lindsay. Alex's (I am on a first name basis with these people) first marriage was to my G5-grandmother, Marion Dyer. However, based on Scotland census records, I discovered 3 additional children of Alex's, born appreciably after his first batch. And, Marion was nowhere to be seen. Therefore, I thought, the 3 additional kids may be from a second marriage. Today, thanks to the Mormon's, I think I found that second marriage. It would be to a woman named Helen Hosie.

And, in reviewing Alexander's 1841 and 1851 census records, I saw that his neighbors were a family of Hosie's. So, once I can get the official marriage record from Scotland's People, I can possibly confirm this second marriage. My hope would be that the marriage record would say something like, "Alexander Lindsay, widower of Marion Dyer, married..." blah blah blah...

Genealogists live in hope.

In random television news, I watched the premiere of Battlestar Galactica on Friday night. Even though I haven't seen the second half of Season 2 yet (it's next on my Netflix list), I was able to follow along with the plot pretty well. I won't get into a detailed analysis here, but it was quite good. There was a bit at the end, with Starbuck's baby, where I thought that perhaps the baby and the Cylon father were in cahoots, that the accident the child had wasn't "real," but we'll see where that ends up...

NP: Soundgarden - Fell On Black Days

Technology!

Today, we got a call from Sears, about a delivery we're receiving on Wednesday. It was a robot caller, and it left a message on our voice mail, as I was at work, and Sue was enjoying the sunshine down on the Hoboken riverfront.

Now, what just hit me a few minutes ago was that the message left on the voicemail was a complete message. It wasn't cut off at all. Which means that the robot was able to listen to our message, wait for it to conclude, and then leave its own message.

I don't know about you, but that's pretty impressive technology to me. Does the robot wait for silence before doing its thing, or can one robot voicemail somehow communicate with another, so that it knows to wait? Anyone have any answers out there?

In other, non-technology news, I got a genealogy request back in the mail today. Listen to this. I'm trying to get a death record from the state of Iowa, for a James Coulson, who died back in August/September of 1894. Iowa requires that someone who requests a death record should be no further back than a grandson. Other people do not have "permission" to request the record. So, I send a letter with my request for the death record, saying that I'd be the great-great-great-grandson of this James Coulson, but part of the reason I'm requesting the record is to confirm that relationship.

So, I get my request back in the mail today, stating: "Please do more research and when you know your relationship for sure you can re-apply."

I'm basically being told to do more research, to confirm the relationship that I'm trying to determine by requesting this death record from Iowa. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!

Come on!

This is one of the frustrations of the modern genealogist. Laws that have been enacted to protect individual privacy (and rightly so), are being applied to records over 100 years old, for records that have nothing of use to identity thieves. Modern records may have cause of death (a private medical issue, which the state of NJ blanks out on their genealogy record requests), Social Security numbers (available through the SSDI-Social Security Death Index), or other information that may be considered private. Old records are generally only of real use to family history researchers, and some states account for this, by putting certain records under more restrictive use.

In NJ, birth records before 1923, and marriage and death records before 1940 are all publicly available at the NJ State Archives. For records after those dates, a person must request them formally from the State Vital Records office. Not a huge hoop to jump through, but it is a way to make sure that the vital record office can redact any private information.

So, I'm a little bitter about the Iowa thing. If I had written that I was certain of the relationship, even though I wasn't, would they have given me the record? Am I being penalized for being honest?

As I said before, COME ON!!!! (In my best Gob Bluth voice...)

NP: Fission Trip - Master

Weekend!

It was a bit of a busy weekend up here in the Lord household. Well, not really, but I can pretend, can't I?

On Saturday, my mom came up to visit our apartment in Jersey City for the first time. She took the train from Allenhurst up to Newark, then the PATH train from Newark to Jersey City. Not a hard trip at all for her, from what she said. For the future, I will probably give her driving directions, now that she knows where she's going. But, if she wants to continue to train it, that's fine also...

We were hoping to get over to Liberty Island to visit the Statue of Liberty, but by that time in the afternoon on Saturday we got there (around 3pm), the weather had turned, and rain was threatening. So, the Statue will have to wait for another day. It was fun visiting Liberty State Park, we got some nice photos, and I was able to point out some parts of the train station there that were relevant for the immigration story of my mom's grandparents, who all came over from Poland between 1900 and 1907. They all passed through the old train station at Liberty State Park on their way to South Amboy and Elizabeth.

Before heading to Liberty State Park, we went out for lunch a little after 1pm to "Rita & Joe's," an Italian restaurant here in Jersey City. It was really quite good, and a place I'll feel free to go back to in the future. I had the Chicken Parmigiana (I'm probably misspelling that...), Sue had a salad, and my mom had pasta with vodka sauce. We all enjoyed our meal, and for three people, I think the total was about $50, which isn't horrible. We'll have to go back for dinner at some point, to see how it is then also, but for now, it gets my thumbs up!

Today, Sue and I went to see "Jackass II," which was really funny, in that "Let's watch idiots do really stupid stuff to themselves and each other" kind of way. For a laughs per minute ratio, it's hard to beat. Of course, you have to like stupid humor, but if you do, more power to you.

What's funny to me is that one of the guys in the Jackass "crew," I think his name is Bam, reminds me a bit of my friend Bill O'Neil, not in behavior (well, maybe a little), but more in looks. It's like they could be cousins or something. Probably not brothers...

On Friday evening, Joe and I did our recording of a new Pseudocertainty show, and it's up on the site, for your listening pleasure. Let me know what you think...

NP: Pink Floyd - Echoes

Oops!

Well, I mentioned on here yesterday that I thought that the year anniversary of this blog was coming up. I have since looked more closely, and I started this blog on 18 September 2005, so the year date has already passed.

Sue me!

I forgot to mention, also, that one of the movies Sue and I saw recently was Beerfest, the latest Broken Lizard movie, from the same people who did Super Troopers. Beerfest was fun, I viewed it as a live action cartoon. Good doofy fun.

Onto deeper things, work continues to go well. It's funny, because I'm not even at the three month mark (that'll be on October 10th), but it feels like I've been there much longer, and not in a bad way. Of course, I'm still figuring stuff out, like where to put items to file away, but overall, it's going well. Having a title like "Assistant Director," gets some attention when you ask people to do things, but there's also relationship building that has to happen, because titles only go so far.

I'm beginning to get calls from other offices, people looking for assistance, or even my opinion about approaches to initiatives, oddly enough. It's fun, but also something to get used to.

Tomorrow, I'll be consolidating my list of stuff to talk about on the next episode of Pseudocertainty. It should be fun, as Joe and I haven't recorded an episode in quite awhile.

NP: Brian Eno + David Byrne - Mea Culpa

Year!

You know, I'm coming up on the one year anniversary of doing this blog. That is, if it hasn't already passed yet. I hope you've enjoyed going on this voyage of life with me. I'm sure it hasn't always been scintillating, but life is lived in the moments between exciting happenings.

For basic daily routine today, I did laundry and dishes. We also put up some more stuff on our walls, but there's more to do. I organized the remaining art (mainly Sue's stuff, which is quite good) a little better, so it didn't look as much like a mess. Over the next day or so, we'll get the rest of the stuff up, or at least decide what will go up where.

This Friday, Joe J. and I are planning on recording another episode of Pseudocertainty. This will be the first one recorded down here in NJ, while Joe is in Boston. I hope that the internet connection is still good enough to let Skype work.

I realized the other day that this is the first time in years that my "center of gravity" isn't Boston, but now the New York/New Jersey area. What I mean by this is that, even when I was out at grad school in Michigan, Boston was a place that was very easy to return to. It's a place where a lot of life happened. Now, that "center" has changed back to the New York/New Jersey area. It's not a bad thing, and maybe it's more measured by what major metropolitan area is closest, but it is very noticable, for me at least. Except for when I was out in East Lansing, I haven't been more than 2.5 hours from Boston since 1989. That's now different.

I do enjoy being back in the New York area, it'll allow me to see family more often, and see New York friends that I've felt a little neglectful about, but I do miss the easy access to Boston. I'm sure we'll get up there again, possibly even before the year is out, but it is a change.

NP: Magma - K.A III

Audience!

You know, you go away from blogging for a few days, and people can't stop asking when you'll blog again!

Okay, when I say people, I mean two, and one of them was my mom. But, it's an audience, and so, I write...

I like to do these blogs in the evening, after Sue goes to bed. It gives me some time when writing won't take away from our awake time together. It's not that this is private in any way, Sue reads it, so it's not that, I just like the quiet of doing this now. I haven't done any blogging recently, in the last week or so, because I've been going to bed earlier. I've been really tired starting around 11ish. I figured my body needed rest, so the blog was sacrificed.

The most exciting news in the world of Lord over here is that Sue has been offered, and has accepted a position over in Manhattan at The New School. I won't go into the details, as it's really her business, but she has a great job, and is going to do fantastic with it. I think it'll be a good move for her. If she wants to take classes there, she can, which will be fun for her.

Once she gets in a good rhythm with the job, we'll be able to figure out our budget for savings, what we can do for future vacations, and other stuff. It'll be fun! It appears that we'll both get the same amount of vacation, and that we'll both have three day weekends during the summer. Good stuff.

Recent movies we've seen, with a thumbs up/thumbs down score:

• Snakes on a Plane: Thumbs up, but not as goofy as I was hoping...
• Little Miss Sunshine: Thumbs up, I enjoyed it, but it could have had a bit more of a resolution at the end. I would have liked to see a little more wrapping up.
• The Last Kiss: Thumbs up, but again, not a very deep film. A number of things happened, but you didn't really get into the characters as much as I would have liked.

I think that's all the movies for the past few weeks. I'm a fairly easy movie viewer. I generally will only see things that I think I will like.

That's all for now... More to come soon. I think I'm very close to the one year anniversary of this blog, which will call for some reflection, I'm sure...

NP: King Crimson - Exiles (20 Mar 1974)

Townshend!

If you have albums, tapes, CD's, mp3's, or whatever you listen to music on nowadays (8 track, anyone?), there are albums that you can return to over and over again, without getting tired of them at all. I recently revisited one of my favorite albums, Pete Townshend's "All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes," issued in 1983, and recently remastered with 3 bonus tracks.

I will admit first off, that I am a sucker for remastered versions of albums, and especially bonus tracks. So when I heard that Townshend's entire solo catalogue was going to be re-released, it was quite a delight. And this is the album I was looking forward to the most. Fortunately, I wasn't disappointed in the result.

With "Chinese Eyes," as it's often shortened to in conversation or in writing, it's not that every song on the album is a hit, or just destroys me when I listen to it, but it is truly the total package of how the album builds, never hitting a wrong beat, always keeping the mood right where it should be.

The first four songs on the album, "Stop Hurting People," "The Sea Refuses No River," "Prelude," and "Face Dances Part Two," really do well in introducing and setting the tone for the rest of the album. It's almost like these four songs make a mini-ep all of their own, putting the listener in the right place for what follows.

I've always thought of the next 5 songs as part of a piece that fit together for the body of the album. "Exquisitely Bored," "Communication," "Stardom in Acton," "Uniforms (Corp d'esprit)," and "North Country Girl" all fit together to create a reflective, wistful mood. Even the "up" songs like "Communication" have a thread of melancholy running through them that make the music match the content of the lyrics well.

The final two songs, "Somebody Saved Me" and "Slit Skirts" round out the album with the perfect conclusion, perhaps the best ending of an album that I've heard. "Somebody Saved Me" reflects on friendship and loss, while "Slit Skirts" focuses on the ennui of love faded to the point of not feeling even the shadow of love. Not the most happy of songs, but it works. And music doesn't have to be happy to be uplifting. I finish listening to this album always feeling reflective, and like I've heard a true masterpiece of art. As an album, a complete whole, I don't have many albums that beat this one.

NP: Ten Seconds - Nightwebs

Photo...

I took this looking out our living room window, looking east on the evening of September 11th.

Access!

Ah, the joys of computing in the modern age. I'm having massive slowdowns on the speed of internet access here in our apartment, I think because some people may be engaging in activities that take up massive amounts of bandwidth. I leave it to the brilliance of the reader to deduce what I am talking about.

I actually have a lot to write about, but I fear that it may get lost in the ether, if I try to post it during this slow internet period. But, I try, because that's what humans do.

Perhaps I will put a list of upcoming blog topics here. Yes, that sounds good...

• The brilliance that is the Pete Townshend album "All the Best Cowboys Have Chinese Eyes"
• Continued genealogical updates
• Items of New Jersey interest
• Brisco County Jr.
• Some photos
• Musings on friendships (good stuff, don't worry, friends)
• Old work stuff
• New work stuff

Seems like a full plate. More to come as I can write about this...

NP: Eric Idle - Paranoid Jails

Slow!

The internet connection here right now, since about Sunday, is VERY slow... I'll post some more stuff once the problem gets resolved...

Rest!

A night with no duty obligations. Wonderful.

Of course, I'll be on duty again tomorrow, but one night away is good for now. I believe next week, I'm on for the full week, but then it'll be about 5 weeks until my next duty, so that's really not bad.

I'm watching the 2 hour "Dirty Jobs" special on Discovery right now, so not much more to say...

Labor!

Happy Labor Day everyone! I can't wait to see what I got this year!

I have been "on duty" yesterday and today, so I haven't really been able to enjoy the long weekend, although I have been sleeping late, which is always a good thing. Duty is about as much work as I feel I should have to do on Labor Day.

Back when I worked at Dartmouth, we often had to start our UGA Training on Labor Day. I was often one of the sole voices against starting on Labor Day, as working on this day seemed anti-thetical to the whole idea of the day. That's why I don't like the whole Labor Day sale idea. Some poor worker is getting screwed and has to work, so that people with the day off can shop and save money.

Personally, I'd like EVERYONE to have off on Labor Day, but I understand that some jobs, like Police, Firefighters, etc, probably have to work today. So, I hope they get mondo amounts of overtime. They deserve it, for working on Labor Day.

In other news, I updated some genealogy stuff on my Mom's side of the family tonight. I got some info from Poland recently that gave me the names of two sets of G3-grandparents. They're Wojciech and Agata (Obuch) Drozd, and Wojciech and Marianna (Dziki) Stachura. That information was in a little note I got with some birth records from Poland. I wish the clerk had written where he had gotten the info, but I'm happy to have it, whatever the source.

I have a bit of a headache tonight, so it's time to sign off...

NP: George Harrison - Dark Horse (Dec 1991)

Compare!

Below, you will find a photo of a sharply dressed gentleman, who is Robert Lord, my Great-great-grandfather.
Now, below this text, is a photo of Elizabeth Lang, and her husband Matthew Cook. Elizabeth Lang is Robert's aunt, but is only 7 years his senior. She was born in about 1846, and Robert was born in 1853.

I think there's quite a resemblance in their facial structure. I guess Robert took after his mother's side, the Lang's, more than the Lord's. I have no photos of John Lord (Robert's father)to compare him to, unfortunately...

NP: Beethoven - Piano Concerto No. 4 in G, Op. 58, Rondo: Vivace

89!

This Saturday, my grandmother is turning 89 years old. That means she was born in 1917, for all you math oriented folks out there.

Sue and I should be heading down to the NJ Shore area, to go to lunch with her and other members of my family, so it should be a good time.

In other news, I've been in contact with a 4th cousin once removed on the Lang side. My G3-grandmother, Jane Lang, had a sister named Elizabeth Lang. Elizabeth married a Matthew Cook, and they had a daughter together named Sarah. This woman I'm in contact with is descended from Elizabeth and Sarah. She sent me a photo she has of Elizabeth, who died in 1875. Elizabeth was an aunt to my G2-grandfather, who I do have a photo of, and there is a real family resemblance there. I'll post the photos here soon, for your own review...

NP: Pink Floyd - Hey You

Cale!

Tonight, in my own little celebration for getting through RA Training this week, I listened to my new copy of John Cale's "Paris 1919," his album from 1973. This is a new release of his old album, with many bonus tracks and freshly remastered.

The album has never sounded better, with songs such as "Antartica Starts Here," "A Child's Christmas in Wales," and the title track being revealed in all of their glacial splendour. Cale has said of this album that it's all about ugly things, said in the prettiest possible way, which is a fairly accurate assessment of the music. It is a very "pretty" album, but the lyrics have an undertone of darkness, but with a wistful, longing turn in places. I love the album, and it was good to just sit and listen to it, letting it wash over me.

Too much, I'm listening to music as background, while I'm doing something else. It's good to be able to take some time and really focus on the music. Not to let the musical journey be in the background, but put it to the foreground, to have it be the experience itself. It's rare when we have the time to do it, but I try to make time to listen to music I find worthwhile.

I have to thank Joe McGlinchey for my John Cale fixation, as he introduced me to his music back during my senior year of college, with the album "Fragments of a Rainy Season," which I recommend to EVERYONE.

Of course, I was listening to this, as I mentioned, because of the end of RA Training, and I finally had some time to just sit and relax. Between the 18th and today, I presented a total of about 21 sessions, with each one lasting at least 30 minutes, and with most being an hour. One of my co-workers asked me today if I had ever thought about being a teacher, as he thought I was very natural in front of the group.

I think that if I hadn't gone into Higher Education, I would have enjoyed being a teacher, perhaps in History. That would have been fun, but I like what I'm doing now, so it's all good.

Back to the present job, it's going to become very busy this week, with new students arriving on Monday, and upperclass students coming back on Tuesday. It'll be fun, but hectic. I also need to start thinking about more longer term issues with the work, now that I've got RA Training under my belt.

NP: Steve Hackett - The Silk Road

Brisco!

So, I started watching the DVD set of the Complete Brisco County Jr. series I picked up a few weeks ago. For those of you not in the know, Brisco County was a show on Fox that started back in 1993, starring the talents of one Bruce Campbell, one of my acting heroes.

This show started the same year as the X-Files, and was in fact the lead in for the X-Files, starting at 8pm on Friday nights, while X-Files came on at 9pm. It was a great night of television for nerds, as Brisco County was a western with a twist. It incorporated elements of science fiction into the plot line, with futuristic orbs, odd happenings, and glimpses of the "future," from a world set in 1893.

The show, as Bruce Campbell says in the liner notes, was just "one notch below over the top." The second episode of the series has one of my favorite moments in it from television ever. One of the bad guys on the show has appropriated a futuristic scuba device, and is diving in a lake to retrieve some sunken booty. The female guest star of the show, hiding in the bushes with Brisco watching all this, says to him, "Aren't you going to do something?" Brisco replies, "What, you want me to dive in the water, engage in a life or death struggle while gasping for air, while he's safe in a pure oyxgen environment, smiling safely behind his glass helmet? No thanks, I'll wait here on dry land for them to come back."

Of course, through some plot devices, Brisco finds himself wrestling with the baddy underwater, while the baddy laughs at Brisco, airless and drowning. Brilliant stuff...

I'm glad the show is as fun as I remember it.

In other news, we're about 3 days into the RA Training here at Saint Peter's. I was concerned about today, because I was presenting 3 hour long sessions in a row, and I might get sick of hearing myself for that long, let alone a room full of 25 college students on a nice day. However, we got through it, and it appears to be a productive day. The staff is responding well to the presentations by myself and the other staff here.

Tomorrow (Monday), I have another 3 presentations to do, but they're not in a row, so I'm not as worried about the staff getting bored with me as I was for today. I believe I was doing 18 hour long sessions/presentations during this training, and by the end of the day tomorrow, I will be done with 10 of them. Thursday will be busy again, but after the day tomorrow, I think I'll only have 2 presentations per day, instead of 3. What a country!

I'll give more updates about Training as we get deeper into it. Overall, I have to say it's going well...

NP: Frank Zappa - A Pound for a Brown (1982 Summer)

Duh!

It took me two days to realize that Brian's comment to this blog of mine referenced Futurama...

I knew I *should* know where the line was from, but was just too stupid to actually recall it in the moment.

Now, I feel much better...

NP: Yes - Give Love Each Day

Music!

Last night, I fired up my Digital Audio Workstation (fancy name for a computer hard drive home studio) for the first time down here in NJ. I had wanted to record a percussion piece that I would just improvise as I go along, but I ended up recording a piece that's basically a keyboard solo on top of some jangly chime like sounds.

Not bad, but I need to work on it some more. Perhaps I'll do something with it tonight...

My website still exists over on the Dartmouth site, but I'm a bit worried about trying to update it, as it may signal something to the server that it shouldn't be operational anymore, if my passwords are deleted... At some point I'll try it out, but not yet. I do want to find somewhere to post my music. We'll see how the future pans out...

This was my last three day weekend, and this week, I'm basically going into my month or so of heavy duty work. RA training begins this coming Friday, and ends on the 28th. Working every day in that time frame, and lots of work into September. It'll be busy, but fun, I'm sure...

On Friday, Sue and I visited some cemeteries in the area, looking for plots of old family relatives, part of my ongoing genealogy search. Here's a photo of a headstone...

This is the stone for Lizzie Cook, whose maiden name was "Lang." Lizzie was the sister to my G3-Grandmother, Jane Lang. Jane married John Lord. This was in Mt. Pleasant Cemetery in Newark, NJ, a very well kept place.

We visited some other cemeteries that weren't as well kept up, and didn't have a lot of success, but it was a good day to be outside. And, I'm a lot closer now to visit some of these places, so I can make more casual trips to them.

NP: Ben Folds - Brick (13 June 2003)

Go to this site for more inspirational goodness...

NP: Brian Setzer Orchestra - Gloria

Liberty!

A photo journal of Sue and my trip to Liberty State Park last Saturday...

Sue in the old train station at the Park, where immigrants from Ellis Island, and Castle Gardens before Ellis Island was used, moved on to other parts of NJ and the rest of the US.

The inside of the station... Neat!

The inside of the station, with me!

Sue!!!!

Outside the train station, on the Hudson, with the most phallic building in Jersey City standing in the background...

Looking across at NYC...

Part of the view across the Hudson. Some old docks in the foreground, where ferries from NYC or Ellis Island would tie up.

Ellis Island, at a distance...

Idea!

Brian had a great idea about some edited Battlestar Galactica, with Seinfeld bass music cues in it. I'd enjoy seeing that, and am smiling just thinking about it. Quite funny...

Everyone Loves Baltar would be a good show also, although perhaps not as much as Everyone Loves Hypnotoad.

Had a good chat on the phone tonight with Don Lord, who's a cousin of my grandfather. He's in his early 70's, and is really interested in the genealogy work I've been doing. Don's a real talker, so it's fun to just listen to him go on about a variety of things with the family, his early memories and all that. He's on e-mail now, so I may be able to just shoot him some questions to get him to think about old relatives, see if anything jogs his memory.

In other news, I got an e-mail from Ancestry.com's "Connection Service," from someone who is descended from a G3-Great Aunt of mine. Elizabeth Lang, this person's G2-grandmother, was the sister to Jane Lang, my G3-grandmother. I wrote back through the Ancestry interface on Thursday, but have heard nothing back yet. It makes me nervous, that perhaps the person didn't get my e-mail. I'll have to try again, and hopefully the person will write back soon. I don't like sitting on these things...

NP: Frank Zappa - Fine Girl (6 July 1982)

Adventures!

Today, Sue and I had a multitude of adventures. I'm still off of work on Friday's, so it's continually nice to have these three day weekends.

Around 11ish, we left to go into NYC on the PATH trains. Sue is going to start looking for work soon, and she wanted to see how it would be commuting into the city. From leaving the apartment, to setting foot in NYC at the 9th Street Path stop was 45 minutes. Walking in a roundabout way to Washington Square Park made the total travel time about 1 hour.

So, very doable as a morning commute. We headed back to Jersey City the way we came, and were back at the apartment slightly less than 2 hours after we left. It's nice to be able to just drop into the city like that, with no real commitment to do anything real. It was a good test run, with no pressure to do anything else.

Taking the PATH train back, it's always interesting to see little things in the underground tunnels as we're traveling. I remember in Boston, Brian and I always would see some sort of stuffed animal (perhaps a tiger) between the Harvard and Central Square Red Line stops, with a sign on it saying "Privatization! It's a Weld scam!" This was back in the 90's, but besides William Weld being the governor of Massachusetts at the time, we could never really figure out what the whole privatization issue was about. Something with the T? Eh, who knows...

Our second adventure of the day was going to the Palisades Mall, off of 87/287, the road that runs from the Garden State Parkway to the Tappan Zee Bridge. I know that Sue and I had talked about stopping there, but I never really wanted to when we were in the middle of a 6 hour drive to New Hampshire. Now, it was about a 45 minute drive away. I think Brian and I had talked about stopping there also, on drives to and from Boston, but of course, we never did.

The mall certainly wasn't bad. It's 4 levels, but not as long as Monmouth Mall is. I guess there's just as much commerce in Monmouth Mall as the Palisades Mall, but just shaped differently. It's also newer, so there's more mall amenities there, like a decent food court, and a big movie theater. Both things that Monmouth Mall has only sprouted in the past 5-10 years...

One thing I did not like at all about this mall is that the escalators going up the levels are all in the same areas, so as you're going from level 3 to 4, you could look all the way down. Generally, I don't mind heights. Planes don't bother me, and enclosed spaces in tall buildings are fine, but those big open spaces in malls, taking escalators where you can look down 3 or 4 levels just freak me out. But, I was a trooper, and took the escalators. It doesn't lessen my anxiety at all, but I try to not let it rule me either.

There are times I don't even like standing by those open middle areas in malls, where you can look down. I used to joke that I thought someone might run up behind me and throw me over, but I don't think it's as logical as that. I simply don't like open space heights. Ferris Wheels have bothered me in the past, and maybe that's another reason I don't like roller coasters.

While at the mall, I bought a few books:

• The latest Harry Potter in paperback (Book 6)
• Star Wars on Trial - Edited by David Brin and some other dude. Brin is a fairly vocal critic of the Star Wars movie, so this book is a series of pro/con essays about different aspects of the Star Wars mythos. Should be a fun read.
• The Pirate Coast - A book about the battle against the Barbary pirates during Jefferson's administration. Should be a good history read.

Speaking of pirates, we also saw the second Pirates of the Carribean movie while at the mall today. It was a lot of quick action fun, but did feel a bit like a 3 hour preview for the next movie, especially with the ending. My friend Lou thought the ending was a bit abrupt, but that didn't really bother me that much. The Pirates movies are fun, I don't look for too much from them.

In other viewing news, we finished watching disc 2 of the 2nd season of Battlestar Galactica tonight. It's a really good show, although I do have some critical issues with it. Here are my issues, I'll talk about the good stuff too...

• For a separate society, albeit a human one, everything in the culture (clothing, written language, cars on Caprica, guns) looks a bit too "Earth-y" for me. It's not the end of the world, it's just something that bothers me a bit.
• For a smart guy, Baltar certainly does act pretty stupid at times. Just in the middle of the 2nd season, he finally figures out he can do a brain scan with the doctor to see if the Cylons have planted a chip in his brain. Of course, his personality is so self involved that he could have just avoided thinking of it, but it's still a bit annoying, because he thinks of it when it's convenient for plot, not as something that might occur naturally.
• It appears that a fleet of 48,000 some humans has about 20 reporters in it, but only one doctor. Galactica itself, a ship of what, about 2000 crew, has ONE doctor? Granted, it was going to be decommissioned, but still, they had a full compliment of Viper pilots, maintenance crew, and others. And it's been heavily implied that the doctor on Galactica may be the only doctor in the fleet.
• Actually, it's the reporter issue that gets to me more than the doctor issue. I can rationalize it, saying that it's more likely that there's going to be more "professional" workers caught in transit during the Cylon attack than some more blue collar types, but it still seems a bit off.
• I do think it's funny that the civilian population isn't more thankful for Galactica. Granted, early in the 2nd seasion there's issues with Tigh causing civilians to be shot, but even before that, there's kind of a mentality that the fleet doesn't really *get* that their civilization is decimated.
• The zoomy camerawork still annoys me, although I do understand it's very hip to do that type of stuff now. That's my worry, that the style is going to *really* date the show. Subtlety is usually better for the longer term than being stylish. But, that's just me.

On the positive side:

• The plot, continuity, acting, and just about everything is miles ahead of the original story/series. But, there's enough nods to the original series to see that the writers took the good aspects of the original, and have incorporated better storytelling methods into the mix.
• Baltar cracks me up. Great characterization by the actor, and great writing. I actually don't think there's a weak link in the cast, although I do think the Tigh character is a bit too much like Garibaldi from Babylon 5 for my taste. Not a big issue though.
• I'm fascinated as to what the Cylons are really trying to do. It seems pretty obvious that they know where the human fleet is at pretty much all times, but are allowing them the freedom to travel on their own for awhile. Interesting...
• I remember Brian saying in his blog awhile back that he was hypothisizing that Baltar may be a Cylon. I think it's possible, but doubtful...
• I noticed on the season 1 discs that most of Boxey's scenes ended up on the cutting room floor. What a shame...

Overall, a good show, and I'm looking forward to seeing the rest of season 2.

NP: The Who - Christmas (27 June 1989)

Insurance!

My car insurance is up for renewal at the end of this month, and with the move down to NJ, we're looking at new rates. NJ is also known for having VERY high rates of insurance. We've received quotes from Geico and Met Life so far, along with our present company of State Farm, and Geico is in the lead by a little over $300 per year.

We're waiting for one more quote, from NJ Manufacturers, which may actually be lower than Geico, so we'll see what happens with that. Fortunately, the cost for two cars is not as much as I thought it would be, although it is higher than the rates in NH were. But, that's to be expected, with more people in NJ.

Work continues to go well. Today was a day to work on RA Training, and I feel like I made good progress. I have to keep plugging away at it, as it's starting in 18 days. Yeech!

Also, it's hotter than balls here. Fortunately, the apartment doesn't retain heat, and the cinder block walls do a good job of keeping the heat out. So, sleeping's been good, and living is easy...

I have to make some calls soon, I've been out of touch a bit since the move, and it's time to return some calls, and make others.

NP: King Crimson - Thela Hun Ginjeet (14 Oct 1981)

Back!

Sorry for the absence of blog posts in recent days. I was down in Monmouth County (I can no longer say, down in NJ, as I'm here all the time now) at my Dad's house for the baby shower for my stepsister. We were gone from Friday to today. I could have written a blog from home, but I was too busy getting sucked into "Spider Solitaire."

I didn't actually attend the shower, but was able to hang out at a pool with some family friends while it was going on. It was more of a female only shower, so about 6-7 guys hung out at this pool. A good time, I got to swim a bit, which is always a positive thing.

That's about it for now. Longer entry tomorrow, I promise

NP: Pink Floyd - Sorrow (Aug 1988)

Music!

I've mentioned on here before that I listen to a lot of music off my computer, with random tunes playing through Windows Media Player. It's always a bit odd when one of my own songs comes on.

Right now, "Never Again" is playing. It's a little instrumental meditative piece I did at the end of last year, in an evening. I really like how it just goes along, with a neat pre-programmed drum pattern that just nicely floats on top of the whole thing. It's not going to change the world, but I like it.

It does make me think that I need to get to recording again, but with the move, I've been a bit busy. Work is keeping my mental energy focused on stuff other than creativity, but maybe one evening this weekend I'll fire up the ol' keyboard and see what comes out...

NP: Mike Lord - Never Again

Movies!

Sue and I made our first foray out to the movies today. We went to a theater in Secaucus, I believe it's at Harmon Meadows, right off of Route 3, about 15 minutes from campus. We saw Clerks II, the new Kevin Smith movie.

I really do have a general infatuation, as many in my generation do, with Kevin Smith movies. I mentioned the other day about Brian and I seeing Clerks for the first time in Boston, at the BU theater. Part of the mystique was that the films were made in New Jersey, and Monmouth County to boot!

I was thrilled a few years ago, going to visit my cousin in Leonardo, that I passed right by the Quick Stop. I was glad I finally found it...

Secondly, Clerks, and the following films, really nailed the attitude of my circle of friends. Did we speak in extended monologues on all subjects related to sex, Star Wars, and other idiots around us? Well, maybe not in monologues, but we did talk about it all...

What I think keeps me coming back to Kevin Smith films is that he really gets male/guy friendships. The heart of so many of his films revolves around two friends dealing with whatever is going on in their lives in the immediate moment. Clerks II continues to mine that vein, and continues to work for me as a viewer on a personal level.

There's a scene in the film where Randall and Dante go to ride the go-carts, perhaps in Keansburg. That was my mental image of where they went, even if it wasn't the actual location. It was a great moment, and what hit me, and probably most people in their 30's watching the movie, was Randall's converation with Dante afterwards, where Randall talked of the go-carts for him representing a more innocent time, when there was hope for the future.

Perhaps a bit overwrought, but it worked for me. I remember, as a kid, my grandmother taking my brother and I to Keansburg one day, and I think we managed to convince her to let us ride the go-carts. What's funny is that I don't remember if we actually rode the carts, but I remember the convincing. I *think* we managed it, but I couldn't bet money on it. We all have moments that we remember fondly, even if we don't remember all the details, and that's one of mine.

Of course, there's a lot of inappropriate humor in the film, and one totally great segment talking about trolls that live in odd places. Fantastic stuff. The Star Wars and LOTR references were actually pretty focused in one scene, much like the original film. A good cameo from Jason Lee, and Jay does a good "Silence of the Lambs" reference... Komedy!

It's something I'd love to see again, but I don't know if I'll get to see it in the theaters in this summer. Of course, it'll be a DVD I get. No doubt.

NP: Mike Keneally - Here Is What I Dreamed

Comments!

So, when someone replies to something in the comments section, sometimes I reply in the comment section also. However, then I don't know if the reader ever goes back to check if there's a response to their comment.

I know I get an e-mail when someone comments on my blog. Do you get an e-mail if someone comments on your comment? I don't think so...

With that said, Mr. Brian commented yesterday:

I don't remember the music from that last bit. I've only seen the movie two or three times, I think. I feel like I may give it a screening soon, in the wake of CLERKS 2 Mooby madness =)Do you remember hitting CLERKS in Red Bank? Was that us? With some of the old school usual suspects?

I feel like I was working hard at trying to convince a few of our posse that they were watching Goodness. Okay, a bit raw, low-budge, aesthetically, not-so-pleasing, one-note acted Goodness, but Goodness nevertheless.

Independent contractors on the Death Star! C'mon!

I can confirm for you, Brian, that in fact, I was at that screening at Red Bank. We were with Geoff and Alex (Geoff, do you read this at all?). I seem to remember them both generally being okay with the movie, but they didn't enjoy it as much as we did. I think Alex was ranking on the acting in the film.

Now, you and I saw Clerks first up in Boston, at the BU theater, with Stephanie Gaus. She *really* didn't get the movie, but you and I ate it up.

We were even two of the lucky few who saw Mallrats *opening night* in Boston, whenever that came out. And I know we saw Chasing Amy together, although I may have been in grad school at the time...

If you watch Chasing Amy again (do you own it?), you'll recall the music when you hear it...

And, season 2 of BSG should be arriving soon from Netflix, so I'll be all caught up. I did see the second half of the Season 2 finale when it was shown, so it's kind of interesting, knowing where the show is headed, but not seeing the details in between yet. Fun stuff.

In other news, I went down to Trenton today to do some genealogy stuff. I confirmed the discovery of another sister for my Great-great-great Grandfather, Richard Coulson. He had a sister named Martha (after their maternal grandmother), who was born in 1829 or 1830 in Ireland, and married a guy named John Jameson. They all immigrated to the US, and lived in Jersey City (a few blocks from here) in the latter part of the 19th century.

If there's any Jameson descendants out there, feel free to drop a line! John and Martha had three kids, Samuel, Sarah, and Martha. It appears that Samuel probably died before having kids, but Sarah married a guy named Agustus (correct spelling) Harper, and Martha may have married a guy named James Kay. I still need to confirm that Kay connection.

NP: King Crimson - Soundscapes 1 July 1995

Hot!

It's a simple subject line, but hey, I'm a simple man...

Fortunately, it's not too bad here in the apartment, but it's a wee bit hot and humid out. The weekend was quite nice, but now, the heat is slamming. But, nothing's to be done about the weather until they build that big solar shade in space, so, we move on.

I've been doing well at work, I feel. I keep seeing little things I can do to improve things in the near term, and larger initiatives to do in the longer term. It's good to be in a place that's able to utilize what I know in positive ways.

When I came home today from work, Sue was watching "Chasing Amy," a great movie, and I think Kevin Smith's best work. Emotional in all the right places, funny in a pointed way, and a lead character who just does all the wrong things, not being able to get past his own issues. It's hard to go wrong with most Kevin Smith movies, but this is one that just gets me.

Does *anyone* have the piece of music that plays over the scene right near the end, between Holden and Banky, a wordless scene from across a room, but masterfully played, with a great score underneath it. There was never a soundtrack for the film, I would have dealt with all the alternative rubbish to get that one piece of music.

NP: Queen + Paul Rodgers - Hammer to Fall (9 May 2003)

Hangers!

Today, Sue and I spent some time going looking for hangers that we could use to hang pictures on our walls. With cinder block walls, no matter what the color, we need special hangers. I've had them before, they're plastic items, with three metal pins in a circular top area, to drive into the cinder block. They're great for these residence hall walls.

Anyway, we had been to some art stores, but I couldn't find them there yesterday. So today, our mission was to go down to Route 440 in Jersey City, and check out a Lowe's store to see what they had.

No luck was found there. Grr!

Then, driving further down 440, we found a Home Depot. We thought we might be 2nd strike losers, but NO, we found what we were looking for! The company that puts them out is called "Ook," oddly enough. They're my heroes!

So, for those keeping score, it's Home Depot ONE, Lowe's ZERO. Gotta work harder, Lowe's...

In other news, I watched the last episode of season 1 of Battlestar Galactica tonight. The end was quite surprising to me, something happened I didn't expect. I need to make sure that I watch Season 2 as soon as possible...

The apartment's coming along fine, 98% of books are on shelves, and Sue and I are both continuing to do the little organizing that needs to be done. We're really almost all there, but there's just a bit more to do... I'll then take some photos, so you can see what the place looks like all decked out...

NP: Ian Wallace - I Can't Breathe

Flow!

I listen to a lot of my music on my computer (82 gigs worth), and I enjoy having the random play just put whatever it feels like into my ears/head. It's a fun way to listen to music, that works for me.

This evening, I got Pink Floyd's "One of These Days" go right into Peter Gabriel's "D.I.Y.," and it was a surprisingly good segue.

NP: Page & Plant - Thank You (Aug 1994)

Rectify!

To rectify an omission from my last blog, here's a Lou photos for all you salivating readers out there...

Alright, it's not the best photo in the world, a bit too blurry, but it's the best I could do, really!

Today, Sue and I went down to the "waterfront" area of Jersey City to do some shopping. We needed to get some stuff for the apartment, and it was also just time to get out of the apartment and do *something!* We got some storage units for the kitchen, some paper towels, a "hub" for our computers, so they could both be online at the same time, and some other various and sundry items.

We had lunch in the Newport Mall food court, and it being a mall, there was a Panda Express, and there being a Panda Express, I had to have some! It was about normal for Panda. Nothing great, but it hit the spot.

Getting back here, I had to go around in the neighborhood a bit, to find a place where I could switch some bills into quarters. There's no bank right at our intersection of Bergen and Montgomery, or in the "McGinley Square" area, so I ended up going into a store to get 7 dollars worth of quarters. It was more than enough to do our laundry here, which is only a buck for wash, then another buck for dryers. Life is good when you have clean laundry...

I had a bit of trouble getting our laptop to have good internet access. It kept on being very funky with me, although our other computer was giving no problems with accessing the web. It was annoying me a bit, because there was nothing obviously "wrong." Finally, after doing other stuff for a few hours, I came back to it, and compared the connection in the Control Panel on the computer with EXACTLY how Control Panel settings were on the working computer. Obviously, I had done this to some extent before, but not to the level of detail I did this time.

And sure enough, I found the issue. There was some "hidden" stuff in the Control Panel that was still set up for the Dartmouth network, and it was probably enough to mess up the consistency of the ethernet connection. But now, both computers are alive and well. Fantastic!

NP: John Cale - All I Want Is You

Update!

Work continues, and is going well. I continue to see that this was a good professional move. It is taking a bit of getting used to, being an "Assistant Director," and being looked to make decisions, have an opinion, and be listened to seriously. All in all, a very good start.

On this past Saturday, I went into NYC, in order to figure out how the trains work, and how long it takes. I brought my camera with me, so here are some photos...

This building is 486 Broadway, where my great-great-grandfather, Robert Francis Lord, worked as the manager of the Stewart Hartshorn office in NYC, around 1900. The Hartshorn company made roller shades for windows, which I guess was quite the innovation back in the day.

The night before going into NYC, I e-mailed my friend Lou to see if he'd be free at all on Saturday. He replied that he was going to be meeting Greg, a mutual friend of ours from college, in Central Park around 3ish to play softball, and that I could meet up there. I wasn't sure about playing softball, but as you can see from this photo, I did get pulled into the game.

I started playing in the 2nd inning, when they needed someone to even up the teams. By that point, I had seen that the folks playing weren't the best in the world, so I felt comfortable sitting in. I was at bat 4 times, and got on base the last time. Woo hoo!

All in all, a very "New York" afternoon, hanging out in Central Park, and playing softball. Good times!

Here's Sania, Lou's wife. She's pregnant, and due in October, so playing softball unfortunately wasn't in the cards for her on Saturday.

I'm trying to get a photo of Lou up here, but blogger continues to give me some issues with photos. Very odd...

NP: Brian May - Headlong (15 June 1993)

Work!

Sorry for not posting a bit more recently, but the move takes a lot of energy, unpacking and getting settled in. Sue got here on Sunday, after the movers dropped off all our stuff, so things are going okay.

I missed Sue when she was still up in NH, so it's nice to have her here now.

I'll be posting some photos from my trip into NYC on Saturday. I met up with some friends in Central Park, and was convinced to play a bit of softball. Fortunately, it was a pretty casual game, so there wasn't a lot of pressure to perform. Of four at bats, I got on base the last time, but then the next person got out. Ah well. More to come on that front.

The apartment here is still a mess, but some things are slowly coming together. Our "office" room is getting there, as is the living room. We'll have to figure out some kitchen stuff, as I think we actually have a bit less cabinet space than before.

Today was, of course, the first day at the new job, and it seems to be fitting me rather well. People enjoyed my presence, and I got a lot of praise for arranging the desk in my office in a more friendly manner. Tomorrow, there will be more "real" work, which will be fun.

The evening here was spent pulling some stuff out of boxes, and arranging some furniture. I'm a bit tired now, but not "sleepy" tired, so I'll be up for a bit more... Not very long though, I think...

NP: Frank Zappa - Opening Night Party at Studio Z